This could be the last year you'll want to buy headphones — a new audio technology is coming in 2019 that could make them obsolete

A startup called Noveto has come up with technology to
deliver sound right to your ears without your wearing any
device at all.

The technology uses focused sound waves.

Noveto brought on Brian Wallace, who helped raise $1.4
billion for Magic Leap, to be CEO and help bring the product to
market.

Headphones may start to look like old technology in 2019 when
Noveto, a startup based in Israel, showcases its new "focused
audio" devices to attendees of the biggest tech show of any year,
CES.

Noveto has come up with a technology that can do exactly the same
thing as headphones - deliver sound right to your ears without
disturbing those around you - except without the headphones
themselves. In fact, you wouldn't need to wear any device at all.

Focused audio can come either from a standalone device, which the
company is calling Sowlo for now, that looks like a small
soundbar or Bluetooth speaker, or from any device that usually
makes sound, like a TV, computer monitor, smartphone, or tablet,
or even things like a treadmill with Noveto's technology built
in.

It emits audio directly to your ears - and it's amazing, quite
frankly. During a demo, I was listening to a video clip that I
could hear loud and clear, but no one around me could. And I
wasn't wearing anything on my head or in my ears.

A prototype of Noveto's focused-audio device embedded on a monitor.Antonio Villas-Boas/Business Insider

If it sounds familiar, you're maybe thinking of directional
audio, which shoots sound in front of the device emitting it. But
if you're not directly in front of a directional-audio speaker,
you're not going to hear it.

Noveto's focused audio is different - it's "steerable," Tomer
Shani, a Noveto cofounder, told Business Insider during an
interview. That is to say, Noveto's focused audio can follow you
around as you move, something directional audio can't do.

To follow you around, Noveto uses 3D-tracking technology to see
where your ears are, and it delivers audio right to them.

"I need to know the position of your ears in space so I know
where to build my sound bubbles," Shani told Business Insider of
the technology. Shani is one of its main engineers, along with
his colleague and cofounder, Noam Babayoff.

The blue X marks the spots.Noveto

Not just a cool idea that'll never make it to the mainstream

Noveto attracted the attention of Brian Wallace, who was brought
on to help bring the product to market.

It's a promising move for Noveto. Wallace, now Noveto's CEO, has
spun the marketing wheels at some of the biggest names in the
tech industry. You may have heard of some of those names,
including BlackBerry, Google, Samsung, the mixed-reality company
Magic Leap, the smartphone company Essential, and, most recently,
the musician Will.i.am's earphone company, i.am+. At Magic Leap,
Wallace helped raise about $1.4 billion.

Brian Wallace.Brian Wallace

When thinking about the viability of Noveto's focused-audio
technology to become a mainstream product, my mind went directly
to virtual reality.

VR is an amazing piece of tech in the same way that Noveto's
technology is amazing. But VR hasn't enjoyed mainstream
popularity, partially because of its typically high price tags,
and the best setups require powerful computers, cables absolutely
everywhere, and even some pretty involved setting up - not to
mention there's relatively little content being made for VR at
the moment.

Noveto seemingly has fewer pain points that could get in the way
of mainstream popularity, mostly because it doesn't require you
to really change anything you're already doing to listen to
audio, nor would it cost you more than you might already spend on
midrange headphones; standalone units are expected to cost $249
to $299, which is on the lower end. Plus, the content for Noveto
is already there - music, video, games, and anything else that
involves audio.

And then there's the potential for existing products to embed
Noveto's technology. This could be amazing in a car, for example.
"Each passenger can enjoy their own audio content," Shani said.
"The kids in the back seat can see a Walt Disney [movie] for the
15,000th time, and in the front you can hear something else or
just enjoy peace and quiet."

Noveto has also attracted interest from Dell for monitors and
laptops with embedded focused audio.

Noveto

How does it sound?

In its existing prototype state, Noveto's technology may not
satiate audio-quality enthusiasts. But the sound quality is
likely to dramatically improve as development progresses.

Wallace said he believes Noveto could easily give its devices
better sound quality than one of the most popular headphones you
can buy today.

"Are we going to replace a $10,000 home surround system? No,"
Wallace said. "But can we replace 80% of what's out there? Yes,
100%."

Antonio Villas-Boas/Business Insider

For now, the focus is to give you personal, private audio
listening without wearing something on your head and ears, all
while staying aware of your surroundings.

During the demo in a busy hotel lobby, I could hear the video, as
well as the activity around me. The only major issue I have is
how it works if you're perpendicular to the device. At a
90-degree angle, the sound bubble would be able to reach only the
ear facing the device.

"We can correct for this by positioning the system above the
user, allowing us to track the ears no matter the position of the
head," Wallace said. That could mean some extra setting up on the
ceiling for home use if you anticipate you won't be facing the
audio source at all times.

Noveto expects the devices to be ready and available to buy by
fall 2019.